How to Live a Long and Healthy Life

The lifestyle we lead can often determine how long we will live. For instance, one study found that excessive smoking and drinking of alcohol, as well as a lack of fruit and vegetables, can shave many years off your life while making you appear 12 years older.

However, it’s never too late to make a change to create a healthy, happy body that you can enjoy for many years to come. Read our top tips on how to live a long and healthy life.

Avoid Overeating

Let’s face it, we all like to indulge a little bit every now and then. However, overeating can play havoc with your lifespan, as well as your waistband. One study found that the oldest Japanese people stop eating once they are 80% full. So, if you want to live a little longer, it might be a wise move to leave a little food on your plate after each meal.

An Active Sex Life

Regular sexual intercourse offers a wealth of benefits that can serve you well in life. In fact, it’s believed that having sex two to three times per week can add three years onto your life. Not only that, but the act can burn as much calories as 30 minutes of running, and can improve sleep, lower blood pressure, boost your body’s immunity and protect your heart.

Tackle Loneliness

Research found that people with many family and friends are less likely to experience heart disease. This is because loneliness can cause inflammation in the body. In fact, this can often be as dangerous as smoking or high cholesterol in healthy people. Unfortunately, elderly people are often more at risk of loneliness or depression. However, there are ways to combat loneliness once and for all.

It’s important to be aware that there are many people out there who are also looking to reach out to potential friends. If you are experiencing loneliness, join a book club, reach out to an old friend or family member, or find a hobby that allows you to connect with like-minded people.

Eat More Garlic

Many people ask, how do garlic supplements work? However, people have been consuming garlic for centuries to avoid a range of health conditions, such as heart disease and blood disorders. Not only can it prevent various health complaints, but it can also treat a range of conditions, such as flu, stomach aches and diabetes. We understand that not everyone likes the taste of garlic, which is why garlic supplements can often be a more suitable solution.

Consume More Fruit and Vegetables

We all know we need to eat fruit and vegetables, but many people often choose to ignore their benefits. Unfortunately, eating less than three servings of fruit and vegetables per day can damage your general health. You might not realize it, but the natural ingredients can reduce your risk of heart disease by a whopping 76%. What’s more, they can also reduce the risk of developing breast cancer.

It’s also the perfect solution for those hoping to banish the signs of aging, as fruit and vegetables can fight inflammation in the body to reduce wrinkles. If you want to look and feel good on the inside and out, ensure you consume five portions of fruit and vegetables per day. Your body will thank you for it.

Start Exercising

The thought of exercising often fills many people with dread. If you are one of those people, it could be because you haven’t found the right activity for your needs and personality. However, if you want to live a long and healthy life, consider adding more exercise into your daily routine.

It’s thought that high-intensity exercise (think running) can add up to four years onto your life. What’s more, moderate exercise (such as a 30-minute walk) each day can reduce your risk of heart problems in the future. Take your health into your own hands and step up off the couch and start exercising.

Quit Smoking

Many smokers often roll their eyes when someone encourages them to quit. Yet, those little nicotine sticks are seriously damaging your health and can shave years or even decades off your life. Quitting smoking is easily one of the best ways to improve your health and lifespan.

You might believe it is too late to quit, but it really isn’t. Quitting smoking can not only slow down the rate of a disease, but it may also boost the survival odds for smokers who have already caused considerable damage to their lung health.

Check Your Blood Pressure

Many people across the world are living with high blood pressure and don’t even realize it. In some cases, a person may experience high blood pressure due to their family history. However, it may also be caused by a high consumption of salt or alcohol, obesity, lack of exercise, stress, or smoking.

Regular medical appointments will allow a doctor to check and monitor your blood pressure. What’s more, a doctor can also prescribe pills that can reduce your blood pressure, which can prevent a stroke or heart attack.

Moderate Drinking Warning

Many of us love to treat ourselves to a nice glass of wine or beer after a long, hard day. While one to two units may help to reduce heart disease, drinking much more alcohol than that can significantly damage a person’s health. Not only can it cause obesity, but it can lead to a variety of serious medical conditions, such as liver cancer, fatty liver disease and cirrhosis. It is also thought to contribute to the growth of mouth, throat and breast cancer.

Enjoy a Glass of Red Wine

Anyone planning to drink in moderation should enjoy the occasional glass of red wine. This is because red wine contains resveratrol, which offers powerful anti-aging benefits that will allow you to live a longer life.

It also offers the benefits of calorie restriction but without any of those troublesome hunger pangs; however, the dosage required is much higher than the recommended alcohol intake. For this reason, a pill is currently in development. In the meantime, a little merlot with dinner occasionally isn’t a bad idea – and it is much better for you than other wines or spirits.

Eat the Right Fats

Not all fats are necessarily bad for you. The secret to a long, healthy life might be to eat the right varieties of fat, which means reducing your consumption of trans or saturated fats. Instead, aim to consume more unsaturated fat or omega-3. For instance, you could swap red meat for fish, such as tuna or salmon. You could also eliminate chips or crackers from your diet and replace them with a handful of nuts. It’s also easy to make the change from butter to olive oil.

Reduce Stress

Did you know that stress can prevent your body from healing from a medical condition, such as cancer? That’s why it’s so important to reduce stress from your daily life through meditation or mindful relaxation. A study by the University of Calgary found that mindful relaxation actually resulted in positive changes to immune cells in cancer patients.

We recommend taking a two-minute breathing exercise every hour. All you need to do is inhale for a count of four, pause, and then exhale to a count of six. Try to perform the breathing exercise for fifteen minutes twice per day, as the deep breathing can help to reduce blood pressure, soothe the nervous system, lower a person’s heart rate and decrease their stress hormones.

Do Something for Someone Else

According to a 2009 study by the University of California, San Francisco and the San Francisco VA Medical Center, seniors who volunteered for charities had a 25% decreased risk of death over the next four years compared to non-volunteers. So, if you want to add many years onto your life, do something for someone else, such as a charity or loved one.

Enjoy More Sleep

A lack of sleep can be a leading cause of obesity, diabetes, depression, heart disease and car accidents, according to the US National Sleep Foundation. However, too much sleep (more than nine hours) can also result in illnesses and accidents. On average, you should aim to enjoy up to seven hours of sleep per night. What’s more, a 20-minute afternoon nap is also thought to help lower the risk of a heart attack by an incredible 30%. If you’re failing to enjoy seven hours of sleep per night, it might be time to treat yourself to a lie in, early night or a mid-day nap.

Conclusion

While it’s impossible to control every aspect of our health, there are things we can do to ensure we enjoy a healthy, happy body for many years to come. From adding a little more garlic into your diet, filling up your plate with more fruit and vegetables and embarking with regular breathing exercises, there’s no reason why you can’t add many more years onto your lifespan.